Business challenge
Surrey County Council (SCC) supports individuals facing multiple disadvantage through the Bridge the Gap (BTG) programme, part of the Changing Futures initiative. The purpose of the research was to provide evidence of BTG’s unique model having a positive impact on those facing multiple disadvantage and whether BTG has had an impact on the way services in Surrey operate.
Objectives:
- Understand the overall value and impact of the Bridge the Gap service on its clients.
- Identify individual impacts and outcomes, particularly in areas such as health and wellbeing, community integration, and personal confidence among the BTG clients.
- Evidence the wider impact of the BTG programme on service provision and delivery, examining how these changes may have contributed to systemic and cultural shifts within Surrey.
- Identify critical learnings and challenges from the programme’s implementation, offering insights that will inform the future sustainability and potential scaling of the BTG service model.
Our approach
This research consisted of both qualitative and quantitative approaches:
- N=10 Interviews conducted among stakeholders/other partners from SCC, as well as partner organisations
- N=5 paired depth interviews conducted with Bridge the Gap Clients alongside their outreach worker
- N=2 sessions of observation at locations central to the Bridge the Gap programme
- We conducted three separate online surveys. One for each group; stakeholders/other partners, outreach workers and clients
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Outcome
Findings from this research helped SCC provide a case for the positive impact the programme is having on people’s lives, along with recommendations on where small improvements could be made.